STX Europe to build icebreaker tugs for Caspian

STX Europe subsidiary STX Norway Offshore AS has signed contracts to build three icebreaker tugs for JSC Circle Marine Invest. A JSC Circle subsidiary, Caspian Offshore Construction in Kazakhstan will operate the vessels in the Kashagan field of the northern Caspian Sea.

The vessels will be delivered in 2010 and 2011, and the total value of the three contracts is around NOK 750 million (about $112.4 million).

"With Caspian Offshore Construction being a new customer to STX Europe, these contracts are of strategic importance to us. The Caspian Sea is of great interest to STX Europe, especially the Northern part where our ice breaking expertise is required" says Roy Reite, President for STX Europe's business area Offshore & Specialized Vessels.

Designed by STX Europe subsidiary Aker Arctic, the tugs will have a length of 65 meters and a beam of 16.4 meters. Built to Finnish-Swedish Ice class notification 1A* Super, they will be equipped and designed for operations such as fire fighting, rescue operation and towing in shallow waters as well as icebreaking..

"The Caspian icebreaker tugs are based on the first Aker Arctic DAS (TM) icebreakers, having operated for more than 10 years in the Kashagan oil development. They are also showing the good synergies between Aker Arctic and STX Europe", says Mikko Niini, President of Aker Arctic Technology Inc.